As medical device technologies continue to evolve, active implanted medical devices have gained increasing popularity in the medical field. For example, one type of implanted medical device includes neurostimulator devices, which are battery-powered or battery-less devices that are designed to deliver electrical stimulation to a patient. Through proper electrical stimulation, the neurostimulator devices can provide pain relief for patients or restore bodily functions.
Implanted medical devices (for example a neurostimulator) can be controlled using an electronic programming device such as a clinician programmer or a patient programmer. These programmers can be used by medical personnel or the patient to define the particular electrical stimulation therapy to be delivered to a target area of the patient's body, alter one or more parameters of the electrical stimulation therapy, or otherwise conduct communications with a patient. However, data entry on existing programmers has been slow and inefficient. Users typically have to enter data manually by typing in each character one by one, either through a virtual keyboard or a physical one. This slow and inefficient data entry process is not only frustrating for the user, but it also greatly increases the likelihood of errors occurring during the data entry process.
Therefore, although existing neurostimulation devices and methods have been generally adequate for their intended purposes, they have not been entirely satisfactory in every aspect.